A Chase Bank in Joliet was robbed late Thursday morning, the FBI said. A man robbed the bank at 2500 W. Jefferson St. at 11:47 a.m., according to the FBI and information on the website bandittrackerchicago.com. The man was described as white, 5-foot-8, with a medium build. He had shoulder-length...

The Cook County probation department for the first time plans to equip some if its officers with body cameras, a move that follows allegations that rogue officers had planted drugs, stolen money and violated the civil rights of probationers during home curfew checks.

Mourners released balloons Wednesday night with shouts of "Long Live Duke," a reference to Jeremy Nixon's stage name Boss Status Duke. The somber event remembering Nixon turned upbeat as tracks recorded by the aspiring rap artist blasted into the night and both friends and family shared happy memories...

One of three police officers facing perjury charges was found not guilty by a judge Wednesday. Former Glenview patrol officer James Horn was discharged after defense lawyers argued for a directed verdict in the bench trial at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse.

Authorities say a northern Indiana woman died after a South Shore commuter train collided with her car as she attempted to cross railroad tracks. Police say 37-year-old Crystal Greene of Michigan City disregarded warning lights when she drove a Nissan Sentra across the tracks in that city shortly...

An Aurora police officer charged with theft by deception – who was recently fired by the department - appeared in court Wednesday morning, when her lawyer and the judge arranged for her next pre-trial hearing to take place in late January. Kimberly R. Hanson, 43, of Plano, is next scheduled to...

A proposed deal that would cost the city of Waukegan $42,500 to settle a lawsuit filed by a local activist remains in limbo. The lawsuit filed by Waukegan resident Ralph Peterson — first in federal court in June and then in Lake County court a week ago — argues that the city violated his First...

Waukegan police reported Wednesday that a suspect has been identified in an incident last weekend where an officer was briefly dragged by a stolen car as the driver attempted to flee the scene of a traffic stop. According to a police statement, Santos L. Martinez, 18, was named in a warrant for...

Dave Martinez' co-workers call him "Speedy" on the job, and the veteran New Trier High School District 203 custodian does set a brisk pace when he walks through the halls of the school's Northfield campus. But after he won a big lottery jackpot he played it cool.

Suburban sports

Jasmyn Brandon's 3-pointer at the third-quarter buzzer was a good start for Rich East toward erasing a double-digit deficit Thursday against host Bloom. It would be an opening act for what was quite a fourth-quarter finale. Brandon went wild from the 3-point line, hitting three. The 5-foot-6 senior...

When the game was hanging in the balance Thursday night, East Chicago Central's Jenasae Bishop demonstrated why she's one of the best players in the state. The junior point guard scored 19 of her game-high 31 points in the second half, including eight in the fourth quarter, lifting the Cardinals...

Alex Fanning had a difficult offseason, watching five of her Trinity teammates transfer from the program and undergoing surgery on her left ankle. The junior center did take away one bright spot — a stronger left hand, which has allowed her to drive and shoot from either side. "I had some injuries...

Aurora Christian's Tori Henning plays basketball with the measured pace atypical of a sophomore. It shouldn't surprise. Henning, a 5-foot-8 guard, comes from a strong pedigree. Her dad, Quinn, played on the 1990 Aurora Christian boys basketball team that placed fourth in Class A. Henning's breakout...

Most read stories this hour

Jessie Grady walked into a Michaels store last week in Chicago to buy a Santa hat for her young daughter. She ended up witnessing — and filming — another customer's "unprovoked attack" in which the woman unloaded on black Michaels employees, claiming she was being discriminated against and declaring...

An undercover sting on Chicago's Southwest Side ended in a hail of bullets after two reputed gang members opened fire after handing over three handguns in exchange for $1,500 from an undercover informant, Cook County prosecutors said Wednesday. The joint operation by the FBI and Chicago police...

President-elect Donald Trump's pick to lead the U.S. Department of Education drew fire Wednesday from Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis. Lewis said Betsy DeVos, an advocate for privately run charter schools and school vouchers, would seek to expand policies that have "been proven to...

As lawmakers prepare to wrap up the fall session, Exelon and ComEd on Wednesday announced an agreement with Gov. Bruce Rauner to raise rates on consumers to help two struggling nuclear power plants. The last-minute attempt to resolve the long-festering electricity issue came on a day the Republican...

In persuading Carrier to keep hundreds of jobs in Indiana, President-elect Donald Trump is claiming victory on behalf of factory workers whose positions were bound for Mexico. But the scant details that have emerged so far raise doubts about the extent of the victory. By enabling Carrier's Indianapolis...

The pilot of the chartered plane carrying a Brazilian soccer team told air traffic controllers he had run out of fuel and desperately pleaded for permission to land before crashing into the Andes, according to a leaked recording of the final minutes of the doomed flight. In the sometimes chaotic...

When people start throwing Nazi salutes in public, it has a way of clarifying where everybody stands. The loosely defined “alt-right” movement — made up of social-media-savvy white supremacists, neo-Nazis, anti-Semites, misogynists and other fringe figures who supported Donald Trump’s election...

While we're still analyzing the election results and debating the importance of different factors to the final outcome, everyone agrees that white working-class voters played a key part in Donald Trump's victory, in some cases by switching their votes and in some cases by turning out when they...

"Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go Blind," one of the longest running shows in Chicago history and a fixture at the Neo-Futurarium in Andersonville, is to close Dec. 31. The comedic, sketch-style production, which has played since 1988, has reached thousands of audience members and is known for...

Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and legislative leaders are set to resume budget talks again Thursday morning as a stopgap spending plan is set to expire at year's end, and the governor is laying out his terms before the meeting even begins.Facing continued resistance from Democratic House Speaker...

Even for the scion of a billionaire family, Todd Ricketts has had an eclectic career — trader in a securities industry startup, part-owner of the Chicago Cubs, proprietor of a suburban bike shop and even guest star on a reality show. But through it all, Ricketts has maintained unwavering devotion...

At long last, rain fell on the scorched Appalachian town of Gatlinburg, Tenn., on Wednesday after savage wildfires blazed across eastern Tennessee, killing seven people, forcing thousands to evacuate and burning hundreds of homes to the ground. Yet even as rainstorms helped firefighters douse the...

The addition of center fielder Jon Jay makes general manager Jed Hoyer even more confident about a Cubs lineup that will mark the return of slugger Kyle Schwarber in 2017. "From an offensive standpoint we feel very good about our group," Hoyer said Wednesday during a conference call. Nevertheless,...

Two construction workers who were found dead at an unfinished townhouse they were working on in Lockport this week each suffered a fatal gunshot wound, the Will County Coroner's office said. Following an autopsy Wednesday, the office identified the men as brothers Marco Ceja-Sanchez, 37, and David...

Baseball players and owners reached a tentative agreement on a five-year labor contract Wednesday night, a deal that will extend the sport's industrial peace to 26 years since the ruinous fights in the first two decades of free agency. After days of near round-the-clock talks, negotiators reached...

It is a familiar scenario: Team loses a close game; coach criticizes officials; coach is fined for criticizing officials. It happened again Saturday when Michigan Coach Jim Harbaugh went on at length Saturday after his team's double-overtime loss to Ohio State about several calls he thought were...

When George W. Bush assembled his first cabinet in 2001, news reports dubbed them a team of millionaires, and government watchdogs questioned whether they were out of touch with most Americans' problems. Combined, that group had an inflation-adjusted net worth of about $250 million - which is roughly...

The Tribune's Brad Biggs answers your questions weekly. Any word if Deiondre' Hall will be back on the field this year? -- @stephenclapp1 Yes, I think there is a chance Hall gets back on the field. It might not happen this week. Hall returned to practice last week after sitting out the previous...

The judge in the murder trial of a white former patrolman who fatally shot a black motorist decided Wednesday to let the jury consider a lesser charge of manslaughter, meaning prosecutors won't have to prove the officer acted out of malice when he shot the fleeing man in the back. Michael Slager...

The opening scene in the third episode of Netflix's new "Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life" features Lorelai (Lauren Graham) and her daughter, Rory (Alexis Bledel) sitting by a pool in Stars Hollow, doing their usual quick banter. But the snappy dialogue turns obnoxious as they start mocking their...

Ronald Reagan was president when Michael Madigan, a Democrat, became speaker of the Illinois House in 1983. Reagan served two terms and died in 2004, and his name adorns schools, roads, parks and an airport. A generation has passed since he left the White House. And Madigan? He is still speaker,...

The golden Moutza of November is at hand. Yet some are worried that certain Castro-praising liberals who didn't even bother voting for a moutza will begin to whine, then blame everyone but themselves, and loudly demand a recount. "Will there be a recount after the column is published?" asked Patrick...

Two men were killed and at least six others have been wounded from Wednesday afternoon to early Thursday in shootings across the city, Chicago police said. The most recent fatal shooting was on the West Side just after 1:15 a.m. Thursday. Marqual Bailey, 19, was found unresponsive in East Garfield...

'I wouldn't call myself a survivalist, just a realist," says "Craig," a financial analyst in Cincinnati. In his 30s, with a wife and baby, Craig keeps a cache of supplies in his basement: magnesium flint sticks for fire-starting, lightweight water filters, rechargeable flashlights, a portable 12-volt...

The Chicago Police Department, which had been preparing for a visit later this week by President-elect Donald Trump, has been told the trip is off for now, sources said Wednesday afternoon. The Trump camp never did confirm such plans, but sources had told the Tribune that Chicago police were working...